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Olympus executives sentenced over accounting fraud

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3rd Jul 2013
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Three former Olympus executives have been given suspended jail terms for their roles in one of Japan’s biggest accounting scandals.

Former chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, vice president Hisashi Mori and auditing officer Hideo Yamada pleaded guilty last year to charges of falsifying accounts to cover up losses of £1.1bn. Kikukawa and Yamada were given three-year sentences while Mori got two-and-a-half-years.

The camera manufacturer has also been ordered to pay £4.6m in fines for its role.

The scandal was exposed in 2011 when chief executive Michael Woodford was dismissed after challenging Kikukawa and the board over suspiciously large payments related to acquisitions.

Following an investigation it was revealed that the company had used improper accounting to conceal investment losses under a scheme that started back in the 1990s.

The three former executives were arrested in February 2012 and later indicted on suspected violation of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act.

Last May last year Woodford reached an out of court settlement with his ex-employer over unfair dismissal.

Since Woodford’s disclosures the Olympus’s board has been partially replaced and the accounting scandal has been investigated by the UK Serious Fraud Office and the US Federal Bureau of Investigation.

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By daymar
04th Jul 2013 23:02

No not jaied

Not actually jailed - only received suspended sentences which is actually extremely lenient considering they will not be in a position to do the same again anyway

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